Bulletproof glass bill: license to be killed? | Opinion

Posted: December 13, 2017 - 5:20 PM

Adam Xu, For Philly.com

Hundreds gather inside City Council Chambers on Dec. 4, 2017 to rally against a bill introduced by Councilwoman Cindy Bass that would force beer deli owners to take down protective safety windows in their establishments.

Yes, indeed she has made history. She has made history with the bulletproof glass bill, which should otherwise be known as a "License to Kill" bill." It is intended to drive us out of business under gunpoint, both figuratively and literally. We have to decide between living or making a living.

This bill not only invites crimes and creates unnecessary bloody violence in our city, but it also tells criminals where and whom to rob or kill.

Asian-American beer delis are their targets. Many of our customers pay with cash. Many of our store owners and their families live inside their stores. By forcing us to remove our bulletproof glass, this "License to Kill" bill makes beer deli owners defenseless in protecting our employees, our families, and our business revenue and inventory.

Councilwoman Bass told the public through a radio talk show that "beer deli owners can use GUNS to protect themselves."

Seriously? That's her answer to maintaining safety in our stores and in our communities? We don't want to be forced to carry guns. The answer to reducing gun violence in our communities is not to force the business owners to carry guns.

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Many of us have owned and lived at our beer deli stores for decades. We are not new businesses that "just popped up" in our communities. In the past, many of us have been threatened, spat on, and assaulted. Some of us have been victims of gunpoint and knifepoint robberies. Some of us have family members who have been shot and killed inside their businesses. And yet, we continue to survive, raise our children, and pay more taxes than anyone. We live and work in the same communities where KFC and Domino's Pizza restaurants, gas stations, convenience stores, post offices, banks, and even police stations use bulletproof glass for safety.

It doesn't matter on which side of the bulletproof glass you are standing—bulletproof glass does not harm anyone. Guns do. Guns will bring unwanted violence toward our employees, customers, and neighbors.

Our city has had enough gun violence. Our neighbors have suffered enough bloody crimes. Our community is safer with bulletproof glass, not guns.

On December 14, 2017 at 10 a.m., this "License to Kill" bill will be up for a final vote at City Hall, Room 400. The peace of our city is on the line with the outcome of this bill.

Fellow citizens, please contact your City Councilmembers and Mayor Kenney to let them know that whoever votes for the "License to Kill" bill will have blood on their hands.

We need your help to keep our neighborhoods safe. Help us to stop this killer bill.